Pitt schedules two-game football series with Utah

July 30, 2009by trib

Pitt announced today that it has scheduled a two-game football series with Utah in 2010 and 2011.

The Panthers will play at Utah on Sept. 11, 2010 in the first-ever regular-season meeting between the schools. The Utes will visit Heinz Field Oct. 15, 2011. Pitt and Utah’s only meeting came in the 2005 Fiesta Bowl, when the Utes defeated the Panthers, 35-7.

Utah finished the 2008 season undefeated at 13-0 and ranked No. 2 in the final Associated Press poll after beating Alabama, 31-17, in the Sugar Bowl. Utah plays in the Mountain West Conference, which is not a member of the Bowl Championship Series coalition, but has an impressive 59-16 record over the past six seasons.

“Pitt-Utah is one of those rarely played intersectional matchups that should be very appealing for our fans and national television,” Pitt athletic director Steve Pederson said in a statement released by the university. “Utah has been one of college football’s biggest winners over the past several years, giving us a challenging and compelling opponent.”